Lap Timer
 

Exciting news, I have everything I need to make a simple ZZ lap timer/counter...all together, materials came to $4...not counting the computer..hehe. I'll build it tonight and if it works, I'll get the plans out ASAP. Wish me luck!

Great! I am looking for a decent timer. Good Luck!

GOOD LUCK!

excellent! especially considering the cost!

i just *knew* someone would come up with a lap timer!

i'm definitely interested! (actually more in the counter capability)...

or you could use this one i used it and it works perfecthttp://www.kyosho.com/gallery/lapcounter.exe

and this file is what? an executable for DOS? for Windows? a statically linked standalone Visual Basic file created by Miguel A. Frontera?

the URL/file won't help me unfortunately - i don't use *any* Microsoft products (too much of a security risk)...

thanks anyway...

its not a virus its from kyosho.com the makers of the mini z it works finehttp://www.kyosho.com/cars/kyod01x1.html heres a link to the site what kind of security risks are you afraid of its a lap counter that you press a button on your keyboard each time a car passes by. and someone could possibly port it to any os.

IT WORKS!!!
 

Woohoo! So here it is...in all it's unfinished glory.

List of Materials:
:eek: Laser Pointer - $21.00
:eek: Phototransistor - $1.50
:eek: AC Adapter - $15.00
:D Software - Free
:confused: Old 9pin or 25pin Serial Port - buried in the junk heap
:cool: Soldering Iron / Solder - if you mod you have this
:) Laptop or PC - I used a 486 DX2/50MHZ laptop with a bad LCD panel..I just knew it would be good for something. Oh yeah, you need Win9x or XP...you might get away with Linux and Wine

How it Works:
You put the phototransistor (light activated switch) on one side of your start/finish line, and then put the laser pointer on the other side and aim it at the transistor. When a car breaks the laser beam, a signal is sent through the serial cable to the PC. The software does the rest. I can see drag racing having one for each lane...the software supports 4 lanes I think, keeps track of laps, lap times, fastest lap, and speed.

The Bad News
It actually costs more than $4.00 because my original idea (flashlight) was a failure, and I had to upgrade to a laser pointer because of the distance I needed the light to travel without dispersing. So, a cheap laser pointer modified to plug into the wall will run you about $35.00, unless you can find a 3v AC adapter in your heap.

The Good News:
You don't have to attach any kind of transponder to your Zip.

More Bad News:
Because there's no transponder, any car that crosses the line is timed, if two cars cross at the same time...well you get the idea. I designed this mainly for drag racing and solo time trials around my track...forget about using this for multi-car racing purposes.

More Good News:
No more guessing about performance increases, track lines, or driver ability.

The Future:
Because the software supports more than one switch, adding a second spaced about a foot apart would give you a nice speed trap for testing high end and/or acceleration on the drag strip.

pics to come.

this is more or less the setup, without the track, which isn't done yet. Because it's a laser, it doesn't matter how wide your track is.

good job would love to see pics i have a hundred spare lap tops around here and dying to use em

you posted em as i was talking


nice find on the software i see me building one for our drag strip good job

the phototransistor only has two leads, so I only soldered those on the PC connector end. The software has a great utility so you can test your I/O ports in order to find the right pins. I also picked up a little led holder to put the transistor in, it acts like a lens to focus light into it AND it will eventually allow me to mount it flush on a retaining wall.

The software was originally designed for 4 lane slot car racing...with a phototransistor mounted in each lane and a bright light above them...slot cars can't change lanes so it works.

So, you can run 4 transistors, using different pins on the serial cable, and the software will track them all...it's pretty neat.

Slot Car Site

I tried using the pinouts from that site, but ended up using a paperclip and the ol' hit and miss method to find the right pins.

wow your lap timer looks great=)

but i had an idea, since most people might not have a spare lap top and all of that stuff to make a lap timer, I was thinking maybe there was a device or something for a TI-83 calculator that records time of a moving object somehow. I mean TI has craploads of tools to do tons of stuff, I tried looking on their site to see if they had a tool like that, but their site is pretty poorly organized and I couldn't really tell. anyone think there might be a device or something that they have for TI's that records time of something?

Laser Pointer Plug-in MOD
 

The first thing I did was rip the silver backing off to expose the guts...it's just glued on (be careful not to mangle it too badly). Unscrewing 4 really tiny screws gets the board out. (Theres a really tiny spring that I lost almost instantly, not sure what it does as I didn't bother looking or it and it still seems to work ok.) I pried the microswitch off the board and put a blob of solder in it's place to jumper the four terminals under the switch...this way the thing is always on once it's plugged in. Then I soldered a lead to the positive upright terminal and another to the flat negative terminal (the board is marked). I dremmeled the battery holder to allow my leads an exit, and put it all back together with the leads hanging out the battery access door. Putting the door back in made it all nice and tight (hehe). Solder the leads to the AC adapter and remember not to look at the beam with your remaining good eye ;)

sorry i ment how many lap tops at once

Not sure about a calculator, but my old IronMan Timex had a stopwatch, though I have no idea how to make a phototransistor talk to a Timex.

Ancient laptops or PC's aren't all that hard to find really cheap nowadays. I've seen the kind of PC horsepower I'm using on the curbside...people can't give these things away usually. I mean my laptop has 12MB of RAM...sheeesh.

I dunno...my guess is as many as you want, or at least until you blow a breaker.

i think i confused ya iment it to be a joke refering to all the parts ones lying around here

Dyno
 

Well then take one that has a fan RPM header on it, and make a ZipZap Dyno so we can use motherboard monitoring software to chart our Zip's perfomance! Remember, you heard it here first!

yeah i was just wondering cause in chemistry and physics classes we always do labs and crap and the school has a bunch of TI instruments used to measure and calculate god knows what, so i figured maybe, in their wide array of tools, TI made some sort of timer that could be used for a lap counter. just an idea.

ohh good idea we could find out our true rpms of the motors oh think of the possibilitys

Re: cool
 

I've actually considered this, and the software allows for adjusting the amount of time an open switch takes before registering, so it might actually work.

oh well
 

- i like the concept (and even have several laptops with i could use), but this looks like too much work, too many cables, and too expensive for many zz folks...

- it would be great for a dedicated setup/track (although i guess if you use a notebook, portable as well)...

- thanks for posting/sharing the info!

- (but i'm still looking for/working on a *really* cheap lap counter)...

I plan to mount photo cells in the bottom of the track just have to make sure I cross in my respected lane.
However working on some diffrent ideas.

Re: oh well
 

Its easier to build than dual cell mod, costs the same as a Bit, and has one cable. I'm pretty sure I've seen cheaper laser pointers...like $8.00 someplace, and if you don't use AC power, just use the battery they come with. Now you're looking at a grand total of $10...it doesn't get much cheaper than that.

I was reading on a slot car site/RC and saw the flag idea bu they used IR with the photo cells.

Maybe I'll try that

I tried using an infra-red emitter first, but the range to the receiver was pretty bad, only about 5 inches max. I still used the infra-red transistor receiver so apparently lasers put out some infra-red light.

I was thinking maybe recessing the recievers in a wood tower (scale of course) so there more sensitive

My problem wasn't so much the receivers as it was the emitter. I don't think it was emitting a very concentrated beam...I couldn't see it so I don't know for sure, but I put the recommended voltage through it and then some, and still was only able to get about 5 inches from the receiver. I'd be interested in finding something infra-red, cause with a laser, it's gonna look a little like my Zip is being scanned at the grocery store every lap! LOL!

DOH!, what if we made little tags with bar codes on them and hit them with a scangun each lap..that would differentiate between cars...hahaha..I might have issues.

I like the dyno idea. . . lol good work on the lap counter as well.

After numerous phone calls and trips to different RS I found one with the 2 Phototransistor, I also picked up an emitter and got your same results 5 inches or so, I manage to make the Lap timer work with a 2AA MAG lite flashlight the light beam is adjustable so I tested it up to two feet with no problem. I wonder if one can focus the light of the IR emitter into a bean like you do on the MAG. All I need is about a foot ;)

Other than that it couldn't have been any easier, installed the software and I popped the phototransistor in a scanner parallel port cable between 10 and 25 and was up and running. I've seen cheap lasers pointers for $3 wharehouseforall or something like that. these look like a bullet and come with different heads..I'm sure they'll do!

thanks for the scoop!!!

Glad you tried it and had success, I couldn't believe how simple it was when I did it...kept thinking...sheeesh, what was so hard about that?

The focusing of the infrared emitter is a GREAT idea, but I don't know how you would see it to focus it...I've also seen infrared filters that you can put on regular lights that are supposed to block everything but infrared...find one of those for your mag and you're all set.

The laser isn't all that intrusive once it's installed, and inbetween races laser light shows are a hit!

:rolleyes: Simple it was...The software makes it really easy! with the I/O testing feature.

As far as the Emitter it would've been nice to have it take power from the parallel port and have it all in one cable, but I'm with you, with the cheap lasers at $3 you can't go wrong and your Drag racing setup with the mirrors would be fairly easy with a laser....Hmm I was thinking of trying a fiveroptic cable instead of the mirrors, I'll have to see how good they do.

Not sure if I've missed something on previous threads but you can get the TOMY TOMICA BIT CHAR-G DIGITAL LAP COUNTER from Toyeast for $9.90. If your just looking for a good cheap lap counter/timer these work great.

Hmm this would end up costing $20 with shipping and all, not a bad price, IT count laps but does it time them as well?? Also the beam seems to be 2" the most, so it'll require some mods...

I still think Steves' idea is cheaper and more customisable. so far I only invested $1.50 and I can setup the lap counter/timer.

PC- $0
Software- $0
cable- $0
MAGlite -$0
Phototransistor-$1.50
Being able to time your ZZ on your homemade track- PRICELESS

Yeah, the software that I've been using keeps track of custom cars, driver names, hot laps, average speed, lap times, number of laps, has a starting tree, racing sounds...can print out race results, practice sessions, qualifying times...and probably more I just havn't seen.

If you've already got the stuff to do that then Steve's is more customisable. The Tomy one has a longer range beam than you'd think, I've had it to about 8" without any trouble.
I'm all for coming up with new ways to do things, that's what makes this such a fun hobby.:D

Sure I Agree 100% :)
Can you list the features that the Tomy counter has? IT could be a good alternative (small and portable) when you don't wanna carry a PC around!

The only reason I built the one I did is because there wasn't an alternative that I knew of. Is there a link or something to the Tomy one?

maybe u can have something to track your speed?

if u have a lil sensor thing set up

when u run the car through it, it takes a certain amount of time for it to go back right?

like...the car will block it for a certain amount of time...then u measure the length of the car....then you divide the length of the car by the time the laser is blocked...and boom! radar gun!...call the cops! ur speeding!

hehe

dunno if u can get the software to do that though